NBA 2017-18: 5 Underrated Amazing Stats  

#3 Boston Celtics' Record even without Hayward

Kyrie Irving has led from this Boston Celtics' from the front

As we neared the All-Star Break, the Boston Celtics began to look human, going in losing four of their last five games. Being second in the East with an assured Playoff spot, they've played at such a high level all season that we tend to forget that they have been without a key two-way player in Gordon Hayward since the season's tip-off.

At the time of writing, other than Hayward, four of their key rotation players have been in-and-out of the team's past few games and will continue to be going ahead due to injuries but they have been able to steady the ship. Since the All-Star break, they have gone 6-2 in eight games but injuries are forcing them to go really deep into their roster, yet they almost won a game on Sunday against the Indiana Pacers.

Brad Stevens is a huge reason for the team's success. He's been able to establish a system where they plug in any of their players from the roster and the team tends to be competitive on both ends of the floor.

So while all of us mention these Celtics among the elite of the league, a right they have most certainly earned, let's take a second to remember who they have been missing all this while and what they have achieved so far despite that.